Marlene Mizzi to call it a day in European politics

The Labour MEP Marlene Mizzi has declared she will not run again for the European elections in 2019. Mizzi, 64, was a member of the Socialists & Democrats group in the European Parliament.

Mizzi said she had informed Prime Minister Joseph Muscat of her decision in May.

“I believe I am leaving at the peak of my career and not in its twilight. Many politicians want to stay put even when their time is up. But my heart is neither tied to the seat of power, nor to the MEP’s salary,” Mizzi told It-Torca.

The MEP, who also owns a children’s educational toy retail chain, said her personal decision was partly informed by the “loneliness” an MEP endures during their career.

“The life of an MEP whose family is in Malta is replete with solitude. I lived this life in Brussels, Strasbourg, Malta and the world’s airports. Now I would like to enjoy more of my family and nephews, and I have decided I won’t run for election in 2019.”

Mizzi said she would carry out her full term until the 2019 elections. She said she was not anticipating any negative polls in the 2019 election, during which Labour is likely to return Miriam Dalli and Alfred Sant to their Brussels postings. “The Maltese know how to evaluate members who worked in their and their country’s interests – and my track record is impeccable,” Mizzi said.

“I hope that in 2019 voters will chose MEPs who put their country first and not use their seat to denigrate their country for partisan gain.”

Mizzi was elected as Malta’s first woman MEP in April 2013, when she replaced outgoing MEP Edward Scicluna, who was elected to the Maltese parliament and appointed finance minister.

During her first year in parliament, she served as vice-chairwoman of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. Following the 2014 European elections, Mizzi became vice-chairwoman of the Committee on Petitions and a member of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection. In 2016, she was named the parliament’s rapporteur on standardisation. In addition to her committee assignments, Mizzi has been serving as member of the parliament’s delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean since 2013. She is also a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals.

Mizzi was born in 1954, in Rabat. She graduated in economics in 1976 from the University of Malta, continued her studies at the Maastricht School of Management, and specialised in corporate governance. She was the last chairman of national shipping line Sea Malta before its privatisation. She is married to Magistrate Antonio Mizzi.